If you have never made homemade frozen custard, you are missing out on something special. It is so creamy, fresh and amazing. Imagine the smiles on eager kids’ faces when they see a bowl full of frozen custard topped with rich hot fudge sauce or a drizzle of sweet strawberry sauce. What’s even better, is you will know you are serving a fresh, homemade treat for your family that is made with all natural ingredients. This custard is free from the artificial additives and corn syrup often found in commercially prepared ice creams.
Preparing the Custard
To make the custard, you will simmer the ingredients in a saucepan. It is important to follow the instructions to achieve the smoothest custard. The eggs are added into the cream after the cream, milk and sugar have already began simmering. If you add the eggs directly into the simmering liquid, you risk scrambling the eggs and getting an undesirable texture. By adding a bit of hot cream to the eggs at a time to bring the eggs to temperature slowly, this reduces that effect. Also, straining the custard through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth will catch any egg that does cook and separate from the custard. This process of slowly bringing the eggs to the temperature of the cream is called tempering.
Preparation, Servings, and Storage
Frozen custard is simple to prepare and only requires two 20 minute increments of active prep time. It does require a long, six hour cooling in between cooking the custard and churning the ice cream machine, but the wait is worth it! One time saving option is to prepare the custard in the evening and refrigerate overnight. Then, churn it in the ice cream maker in the morning and freeze until after lunch. What a delightful afternoon snack or sweet after dinner treat.
One batch of frozen custard yields up to eight generous servings. It can either be served in a small dish or on a crispy waffle cone. However, it’s best not to double the recipe. This batch will fill an entire standard 2 quart ice cream maker. The ice cream bowl must be thoroughly frozen for optimal churning. Forcing two batches through one machine could compromise the creamy texture you desire. If, however, you happen to have access to a larger ice cream maker, feel free to double the recipe! This delectable treat is worth keeping stocked in your freezer, ready to satisfy your sweet cravings at a moment’s notice. For optimal freshness, remember to store your frozen custard in the freezer, where it will remain delicious for up to one month.
Vanilla Frozen Custard
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Ingredients
- 2 cups Heavy cream
- 2 cups Milk, 2%
- 1/2 cup Sugar (mixed with cream and milk)
- 3 Egg yolks
- 1/4 cup Sugar (mixed with egg yolks)
- 1 tbsp Mexican vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a saucepan over medium heat, bring the cream, milk, and sugar to a simmer.
- In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks and the second amount of sugar until smooth.
- Add a total of 1 cup of the hot cream to the egg yolks, 1/4 cup at a time.
- Slowly add 1/4 cup of simmered cream at a time to the yolks, whisking constantly.
- Pour the egg yolks mixture back into the saucepan and add the Mexican vanilla.
- Simmer on low until the mixture thickens.
- Once the mixture has thickened, pour through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl.
- Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.
- Once the custard is cooled, churn it in the ice cream machine for 20-30 minutes.
- It can be served immediately as soft serve ice cream or frozen for 2 hours in a freezer safe container for a firmer ice cream.
Nutrition
